"Coronado, CA (April 11, 2013) - As summer approaches, the City of Coronado would like to remind homeowners that renting a residential property in Coronado for less than 26 days at a time is prohibited.
“The purpose of the City’s prohibition of short-term rentals in a residential zone is to preserve the quality of life for full time residents and to maintain the residential character of local neighborhoods. Short-term rentals often create an intensified use that brings excessive vehicles, noise, and turnover of people in a residential home or condo that disrupts the livability of the neighborhood.
“Property owners who violate the law by renting their property for less than 26 consecutive days at a time can be fined and the subject of legal action by the City to enforce its regulations. Renting a private home or condo for special events, weekend stays or as a weekly vacation home is against the law regardless of the time period between rentals. Residents are asked to comply with the law to be a good neighbor and maintain the residential atmosphere in the community.”
Source: www.coronado.ca.us

In the past couple of months, there have been several commentaries and letters in the Sandpiper dealing with the adverse effect of short-term rentals in Del Mar on the quality of life of Del Mar residents. While short-term rentals have long-existed in Del Mar, the problem has become particularly acute in the past couple of years, perhaps because a reviving economy has allowed more and more affluent individuals to buy second homes and rent them out.

Parts of Del Mar, particularly the Beach Colony in summer, resemble an upscale commercial hotel zone and some residences seem like fraternity houses. In areas zoned for one-family dwellings, owners and real-estate agents advertise three and four-bedroom homes that will house up to 15 people. The result, of course, is that many permanent residents cannot fully enjoy the beauty, tranquility, and sense of community that have made Del Mar special.

The Del Mar Community Plan, adopted in 1976, refers to “…the determination to maintain Del Mar as a village-like community of uncrowded, predominantly single-family residences.” Zoning chapters of the Municipal Code, in conformity with the Community Plan, state the importance of preserving the village-like atmosphere. The zoning chapters also list allowable uses of property. For example, in R1-10B, the only allowable uses are residential dwellings. In R1-5B, allowable uses include residential dwellings; and day care and community care facilities. In none of the residentially-zoned areas are short term rentals listed as allowable uses. Therefore, short-term rentals in Del Mar, despite the fact they have occurred for years, are not legal.

I would suggest that the City Council first address the legality of short-term rentals in conformance with any California Coastal Commission policies, and decide if they are allowable in all or parts of the city. If a decision is made to amend applicable zoning chapters to permit them—and this can certainly be debated--a system of regulation should be established to include, but not be limited to, the minimum and maximum days of a short-term rental and restrictions on the number of occupants. Finally, the hotel transit occupancy tax (tot), which is paid by the guest, should be extended to such rentals. This would permit funds for the enforcement of regulations and provide additional support for the City’s finances. (Solana Beach, Encinitas, and Carlsbad all regulate short-term rentals and impose tots).

The City Council, as any legislative body, must respect property rights. But it must also work to protect the right of those of us who are fortunate enough to be permanent residents to enjoy our homes in this unique place. Del Mar has attempted to achieve a balance between property rights and the enjoyment of property through zoning, the establishment of floor area rations, and the design review process. The City Council should continue pursuit of this balance through restrictions on and regulation of short-term rentals.

PIPE UP: 100% correct

I think [Scott Renner] is 100% correct. I won’t go into the details with my experience because I know and like the owners of the home involved. Suffice it to say that with the owners living elsewhere this was a years long series of one and two week rentals. The main problem being overflowing trash/garbage cans that often failed to get to the street for pickup and additional noise.
Incidentally, you may find that some owners consider that they “can rent to anyone they damn well please” - whenever they please.